The battle between Konoha and Hashirama naturally attracted a lot of attention from the ninja world.
However, considering that Sunagakure was already Konoha's subordinate, Kumogakure had been completely wiped out, and Iwagakure was struggling to survive in the cracks, there weren't many who could arrive at the scene immediately.
Ōnoki, being able to fly, arrived relatively quickly. He reached the battlefield shortly after Konoha launched its counterattack. Another person who arrived at the scene was Madara Uchiha.
Since Hashirama had appeared, how could Madara not?
However, this time, Madara was different from before. He didn't rush in eagerly to fight Hashirama and determine a victor. Instead, he stood at a distance, quietly observing the battle between Hashirama and Konoha.
Both Madara and Ōnoki were internally shaken. Up to this point, Konoha hadn't sent a single person into battle. They had only been using some unknown chakra weapons for both offense and defense.
For these old-timers, this was almost unimaginable.
The most destructive jutsu in the ninja world was undoubtedly the Tailed Beast Bomb. However, the Tailed Beast Bomb was not something that could be used casually.
First, one needed a jinchūriki capable of controlling a tailed beast. Second, that jinchūriki had to be able to actually harness the tailed beast's power.
In reality, unless one was a perfect jinchūriki, the moment a Tailed Beast Bomb was unleashed, there was a high chance it would end up targeting their own village instead.
But now, Konoha had completely changed the battlefield dynamics. Attacks on the level of the Tailed Beast Bomb were being fired repeatedly.
Even Hashirama hadn't expected that Konoha would be able to unleash another attack of the same caliber so soon.
After the previous Fire Release attack, Hashirama had been more focused on defending against potential attacks from Aoba, Kakashi, and another ninja who could use the Flying Thunder God Technique.
However, no one came. Not a single Konoha ninja stepped forward to engage him in direct combat. Instead, an unknown Ice Release jutsu suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
Hashirama, in Sage Mode, sensed the chakra immediately and attempted to evade.
This body of his was nowhere near as powerful as his original perfect Sage Body. Both his regenerative abilities and chakra reserves were inferior. So, his first instinct was to dodge.
But it was futile. The attack's range was simply too vast. In the blink of an eye, the Ice Release technique covered an area of several hundred meters. Even with his full-speed movement, Hashirama couldn't completely escape.
He was instantly frozen within it. The Ice Release continued to intensify, and within a few breaths, it had formed an ice mountain, sealing Hashirama inside.
"Sealing team, prepare!"
Following the ninjutsu team's attack, the sealing team swiftly took action. The previously pure ice mountain was immediately covered in countless sealing formulas. In the next second, the entire ice mountain transformed into a massive sealing structure.
"Did we succeed?"
"No way it could be that easy. That's Hashirama we're talking about."
As members of Konoha's new generation of shinobi, these young ninjas didn't hold the same reverence for the so-called God of Shinobi as the previous generations did. This, of course, was also influenced by Aoba's controlled propaganda.
However, their understanding of Hashirama's abilities was not lacking in any way. In fact, this defensive formation had been designed with Hashirama as the hypothetical enemy and had undergone multiple simulation drills.
Sure enough, the sealed ice mountain soon began to crack. Hashirama's immense chakra forcefully shattered the seal. A colossal wooden giant emerged once again, completely demolishing the ice mountain.
The roaring giant threw a punch directly at Konoha's defensive barrier. This blow was no less powerful than a small-scale Tailed Beast Bomb, but with the force concentrated into a single point.
The barrier of Konoha trembled violently.
"The barrier won't hold much longer!"
"We need thirty seconds to replace the chakra core."
"That's impossible! Look at that thing, if we give it ten more seconds, it could destroy half of Konoha. Where's the Lightning Release Railgun? Why isn't it ready yet?"
"Uh... it's still not fully developed."
"Isn't this the perfect time for a live combat test? Sealing team, manually reinforce the barrier's core with chakra to buy some time. Everyone else, prepare the Lightning Release Railgun!"
As another massive chakra reaction appeared, Hashirama, now wiser, chose not to take it head-on. Instead, he instantly teleported behind the wooden giant's head.
The wooden giant's massive body completely shielded him from sight. Hashirama was confident that, given the wooden giant's defensive power combined with his own strength, even if the same attack came again, there was absolutely no way it could injure or capture him.
However, this time, things were different.
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Currently on Chapter 362 - Epilogue